The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Nigerian Railway Corporation

  • Okhiria is NRC new chief

    Mr Fidet Okhiria, Director Mechanical, Electrical, Signal and Telecommunications of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has emerged as the acting Managing Director of the Nigerian Railway Corporation.

    Okhiria, an engineer, takes over from Adeseyi Sijuwade, whose regime came to a sudden end on Monday, in a Tsunami that shook 26 parastatals of the federal government.

    The new helmsman, who it was learnt had led some management officials of the corporation to Abuja on Tuesday, promised his total commitment to the ongoing transformation of the Nigerian Railway Corporation.

    Sijuwade, an engineer, came on board as the Managing Director of the Nigerian Railway Corporation in August 2010, and had gotten his tenure renewed in 2014 by the last administration of President Goodluck Jonathan due to the legacy efforts he made to reactivate the dead corporation.

    He was into the second year of his second term when he was axed on Tuesday.

     

  • Railway contract scam: Reps fault process of award 

    Railway contract scam: Reps fault process of award 

    The House of Representatives has faulted the process of award of some contracts for the construction and rehabilitation of railway project between 2010 and 2014.

    This is as a former Chairman of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) and former Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Haliru Bello denied involvement in awards of contracts despite signing the contract papers.

    Minister of Transport Rotimi Amaechi, who also appeared before the Ehiozuwa Agbonayinma-led-ad hoc Committee probing the railway project of the last administration, said the focus of his administration is to develop a faster railway in four years for Nigeria by securing adequate funding for it, through loans or concession.

    On his part Bello, who was NRC Chairman between February 2009 and June 2011, said as the overall head, his duty was to provide policy direction for the NRC and sign contracts approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC).

    He said his Board was not involved in award of contracts but he signed several contrsct agreements running to billions of naira during his tenure.

    However, the Committee was not satisfied with the explanations of the Managing Director (MD), Seyi Sijuwade on the process of award of contract on the project despite explaining that contracts above N250m is above his limit for approval.

    According to the Committee, several faceless companies working with NRC were uncovered as documents at its disposal showed where contracts papers were witnessed by just the MD and NRC’s Secretary without names and signatures of the main signatories.

    The Committee was also disturbed about, duration and addendum to contracts leading to questionable figures, like the N3.2b Zaria-Kaura Namoda line among several others.

    The sale of railway scraps amounting to N3b that could not be traced to the Federation Account was also raised by the Committee.

    The Committee was also disturbed about the prominence of a contractor, Eser Nigeria Ltd in NRC activities and asked the relationships between the MD and the Directors of the company.

    Sijuwade, who denied any personal relationships with the Directors of the company, said, “I am unaware of any my relation bejng a Director of Eser,” while noting that due process was always adhered to in the award of contracts at the NRC.

  • Railway to evacuate containers from Lagos to Kano next month

    The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has said it will start haulage of containers from Lagos to Kaduna and Kano States next month.

    NRC’s Head of Public Relations, Mr David Ndakotsu, told The Nation that arrangement has been concluded to transport containers from APM Terminals at Apapa Port to inland container depots in Kaduna and Kano.

    “As from August, we will start the haulage of containers from APM Terminals in Apapa Port to the Inland Container Nigeria Ltd depots in Kaduna and Kano states.

    The initiative, he said, was to boost the corporation’s public-private partnership.

    Ndakotsu also said an agreement had been signed with a company for the weekly haulage of its bran and wheat flour from Lagos to Kaduna under the programme.

    “About 436 tonnes of the products are expected to be freighted weekly from Apapa to Kaduna,’’ he said.

    On the third weekly Lagos-Kano passenger train service, Ndakotsu said the train would depart Lagos at 11.00 a.m. every Thursday with arrival time of 5.00 p.m. in Kano the following day.

    He said with the additional service, the number of passengers to be moved on the route would increase from 3,500 to 5,500.

    “It is anticipated that the third weekly train service will help to decongest existing services and avail passengers more comfortable and pleasant trips,’’ Ndakotsu added.

    The first weekly Lagos-Kano passenger train service, which was inaugurated on December 21, 2012, departs Lagos at noon every Friday.

    The second weekly train service, which departs Lagos at 9.00 a.m. on Tuesdays, terminates at Ilorin, Kwara, with a connecting train from Offa to Kano.